Friday, November 26, 2021

Pharisees Watching Jesus Again - Luke 5:17

The beloved physician Luke shared how, “it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be you clean. And immediately the leprosy departed from him. And he charged him to tell no man: but go, and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities. And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed”, and in chapter five and verse seventeen of his book Luke shares how, “there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by” where we read:

And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem:

and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.

The verse reads, “And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, ... Luke began with the words, “and it came to pass” or “and it happened and came into existence” “on a certain day” which means “upon a particular and specific sunrise to sunset”, “as he was teaching” or “while and during the time Jesus was giving didactic discourse, imparting instruction and instilling doctrine”, “that there were Pharisees” which means “there existed Pharisees who were a sect that seems to have started after the Jewish exile. In addition to Old Testament books the Pharisees recognized in oral tradition a standard of belief and life” “and doctors of the law” or “and teachers, expounders and interpreters of Moses' law” “sitting by” which means “were seated near to where Jesus was teaching”. Luke shared on a particular day Jesus was giving instruction to people, and the religious leaders known as the “Pharisees” and the “doctors” of Moses' law were among the crowd listening to Him.

The verse goes on to say,... which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: Luke continued with words, “which were come out” which means “who arose and followed Jesus” “of every town” or “from each, every, the whole and everyone of the villages, habitations and municipalities “of Galilee” which means “which means circuit and was the name of a region of northern Palestine, bounded on the north by Syria, on the west by Sidon, Tyre, Ptolemais and their territories and the promontory of Carmel, on the south by Samaria and on the east by the Jordan”, “and Judaea” which means “he shall be praised and was in a narrower sense, to the southern portion of Palestine lying on this side of the Jordan and the Dead Sea, to distinguish it from Samaria, Galilee, Peraea, and Idumaea”, “and Jerusalem” which refers to “the city whose name means set you double peace and was the capital of Palestine”. Luke shared how people came from each and every “village and municipality” within the regions of “Galilee, Judaea and Jerusalem” to hear Jesus teach.

Finally the verse says, “and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Luke completed the verse with the words, “and the power” or “and the strength, ability and might” “of the Lord” which means “belonging to the One to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; master, and the title given to God the Messiah” “was present to heal them” or “was with Jesus to cure, free from errors and bring about salvation to the people”.

When we think through Luke's words in this verse, we see how people came from all around to hear and be cured by Jesus, and the religious leaders came to listen to Him as well. Jesus not only taught the word of God and the gospel of His Kingdom, but He also demonstrated His authority over physical and spiritual maladies. God loves people, and when they gather to “hear” Him and bring to Him their needs, He desires to “teach” them His principles and give them aid wherever they are hurting. Those who are wise will yield their lives to Him as their personal “Savior and Lord” and receive “cleansing” from their sins, help for their needs and the promise of everlasting life with God.

Next time Luke shares how, “men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites,
http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".








 

No comments:

Post a Comment